CAMS Suspicious Activity Reporting 3

Question 1

A bank employee inadvertently discloses to a customer that a SAR has been filed on their account. What is this called and what are the consequences?

Accepted Answer

Tipping off — a federal crime that can result in criminal prosecution

Answer

Whistleblowing — protected under federal law

Answer

Breach of privacy — subject to civil penalties only

Answer

Inadvertent disclosure — addressed through internal disciplinary procedures only

Question 2

What is the primary use of SAR data by FinCEN?

Accepted Answer

Building financial intelligence databases used by law enforcement to investigate and prosecute money laundering, terrorism financing, and other financial crimes

Answer

Directly prosecuting financial criminals based on SAR filings alone

Answer

Publishing annual statistics on the state of financial crime in the U.S.

Answer

Automatically freezing accounts mentioned in SARs pending investigation

Question 3

Which of the following financial activity patterns is a classic red flag for trade-based money laundering (TBML)?

Accepted Answer

Significant over- or under-invoicing of goods in international trade transactions

Answer

Regular wire transfers between established business partners in the same country

Answer

Customers who request foreign currency for international travel

Answer

Businesses that maintain accounts in both dollars and foreign currencies

Question 4

What is 'placement' in the context of money laundering?

Accepted Answer

The first stage where illicit cash is introduced into the financial system

Answer

The process of placing AML monitoring controls on high-risk accounts

Answer

Placing limits on transaction sizes to prevent suspicious activity

Answer

The placement of beneficial ownership documents in compliance files

Question 5

Under what circumstances should a financial institution file a SAR when law enforcement has asked it NOT to close a suspicious account?

Accepted Answer

The institution should still file the SAR as required and document law enforcement's request, as BSA obligations are not waived by law enforcement requests

Answer

The institution should comply with law enforcement and never file a SAR if asked not to

Answer

The institution should delay SAR filing until the law enforcement investigation concludes

Answer

The institution should seek a court order before deciding whether to file

Question 6

What is the dollar threshold that triggers a mandatory SAR filing for a transaction involving a non-insider customer of a bank?

Accepted Answer

$5,000

Answer

$1,000

Answer

$3,000

Answer

$10,000